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remember I’D BLOGGED ABOUT PARK SI HOO last december?

for some reason, i had picked up Prosecutor Princess to watch late last year.

yea, this is coming from someone who usually doesn’t spend alot of time watching korean dramas. i used to watch maybe fewer than a handful in a year? but in these few years, i’m watching more, but still fewer than a dozen a year, i’d reckon.

you see, i’m quite fussy what i watch.

i generally don’t like period dramas. yea, yea, i know lots and lots of kdrama fans love these…. i didn’t even watch Jewel in the Palace, Dongyi…. *GASP*

and i also usually stay away from dramas that involve housewifey stuff, mother-in-law and overly draggy family feuds. i also dislike female leads who are overly loud or helpless.

i’m really fluffy-shallow when it comes to dramas. i like modern and i like to see pretty faces with nice clothes, haha!

so there, not that many choices, ya? i guess this explains why i don’t watch that many kdramas, haha!

anyway, back to Park Si Hoo!

nay, i didn’t watch anything he acted in after getting a teeny weeny bit hot and bothered by him in Prosecutor Princess. hee…! i’m a fully grown woman with normal womanly needs, you know? hahaha! and i did mention a few times 我喜欢有宽厚肩膀的男人, ya?

i know he looks nothing like YJ. and his personality and stuff also ain’t got anything similar to YJ. but since the beginning, he reminds me of YJ ever so often! i too didn’t understand since i don’t see any obvious connection or resemblance between the two men.

but somehow, PSH’s aura reminds me of YJ.

then i realised i had the feeling at first coz they tend to strike very similar poses when they’re being photographed. the hand gestures, the angles at which they tilt their faces. really!

and just last night, it struck me that they both belong to the category of celebs who dont photograph particularly well. i mean, there are lots and lots of korean actors who look muuuuuuuuch better than them in stills and posters.

but the moment you see them in motion when they’re acting in some drama, BBANG! they really hit you and you’re being mesmerized without even being conscious of it. yea, it’s like you see them appear onscreen and nothing much happens at first… then somewhere between their fifth to seventh appearance onscreen in that drama, you realise belatedly you’re swooning…!

jinjja! you just jump from being indifferent and nonchalant towards them right smack into being inexplicably fascinated by them. it’s a total blank in between. you don’t know what hit you.

and believe me, i ain’t the only one…. in korean dramas, rarely and i mean really really really rarely does the second male lead gets the girl.

YJ did it once in Hotelier. he was the second lead and wasn’t supposed to win the girl… but haha, let’s just say he eventually did due to popular demand!

and then there’s PSH.

he did it once in that Neighbor drama, and then he did it again in Queen of Reversals!

in fact, Queen of Reversals got extended repeatedly and that’s because nobody could resist the second male lead and needed the scriptwriter to flesh out the character more! the more airtime PSH got in the drama, the better the ratings got, and yup, it got extended all the way to, what, 31 episodes?! and yup, he sorta progressed to usurp the first male and brought home the girl, keke!

quite something huh? not once but twice, he won the girl.

and…. if you would google second lead syndrome, keke, his name pops out in every other post. and there’s this cute saying that gets reposted and reblogged pretty much everywhere… it goes like this, ‘If Park Si Hoo gets cast as second male lead, the first male lead starts to quiver!‘ wakakakaka!

for sure i ain’t alone in my inexplicable fascination with PSH.

seriously, he ain’t exactly super-duper goodlooking from photos and all… but there’s just something about him when you see him in a drama. and of course, other than his looks, his smile, his dimples, his body, this man’s got acting skills too! woohoo!! what’s NOT to like??

and oh man… what a body! (click HERE for more droolicious pics!)

read these giddy glowing compliments on him,

reposted from DRAMABEANS

… He’s one of those actors whose buzz you don’t really get…until you watch him in something, and then you’re like, who IS this guy, and can I have MOAR, please? Park Shi-hoo steadily made his way up the actor food chain with family dramas and daily shows, (or as the second lead in dramas like Iljimae) until his starring role in last year’s cult hit Prosecutor Princess, which wasn’t so hot ratings-wise, but had a rabid fanbase whose fervor knows no bounds. Seriously. It’s sometimes scary.

And then at the turn of the new year, he began as the second lead (again) in the workplace drama Queen of Reversals, with Kim Nam-joo and Jung Jun-ho. The show kept getting extended, and extended… and then ratings kept on rising, and rising… and the more screentime he got, the better the drama was, and the more his character romanced the heroine, the more we HAD to see what happened next. It’s actually a case where an extension allowed time for the second lead to be developed as a character…and paved the way for him to get the girl. (And keep fans from posting angry comments, I daresay)…

reposted from POPKISSKISS

PARK SHI-HOO/GOO YONG-SHIK: I’m not sure I can explain the Park Shi-hoo mystique. Photos don’t capture it, IMO. It’s a combination of a deep voice, good looks, and the equal ability to play both brooding hunk & adorable manchild. Mix that with a lonely chaebol character who’s never met his mother and worships the (older, divorced) heroine, and you’ve got the textbook definition of a kdrama hero. He’s like ahjumma crack.

reposted from PARKISHOO4U,

… It was just quite recently when I finally decided to watch one of Si Hoo’s dramas. Why? Because fans’ comments about him really piqued my curiosity. I was watching another drama at that time and I was upset with a second lead character. It just happened I started digging about “second lead syndrome”.

… Though I like all his characters, I will be forever in love with Seung Yoo. “The Princess’ Man” is really the best work of his life as he stated. He could finally show off the full range of his mesmerising acting skills. He was just on fire from the very first minute he appeared onscreen. Not to mention how beautiful he looked in historical costumes; I’ve never seen anybody looking more beautiful with historical hairstyle and costume. I liked him after QoR, but this is the exact moment when I fell in love with him completely. As Seung Yoo was falling in love with Se Ryung, I knew at that moment I fell head over heels in love with Si Hoo. I swear I forgot how to breathe at that moment…

there are some pretty good writers and bloggers amongst his fans… guess like YJ, PSH seems to attract a certain type of women. and somehow, they all seem that bit more matured, refined and quite a few seem armed with fabulous penmanship!

read THIS PIECE BY DANGERMOUSIE, one of my faves to read.

and haha, am sure there are TripleS and KHJ fans amongst my readers, here’s A PIECE PENNED BY A TRIPLES WHO HAPPENS TO ADORE PSH TOO.

i was contemplating watching Queen of Reversals… what’s stopping me? coz they’d touted it as the spin-off from that Housewife Reversal drama!

yea, i know lots and lots of peeps like that one, but i couldn’t stand it. the characters were unreal to me, and the cast was not attractive to me either. i especially couldn’t stand that weakling two-timer of a husband. what on earth did the two women see in him? i thought the drama was unnecessarily long and too much OTP lines and sub-plots. of course, that’s just me.

but i was still tempted to watch Queen of Reversals coz the reviews all promised it’s got nothing to do with the housewifey original Reversal series. okie… but but but, it’s got marriage and divorce written all over the storyboard! what if there’re housewifey and mother-in-law nonsense?

so…. i sat on the series for months, undecided.

then somehow my itchy fingers went to google and i came across this gloriously written review by DRAMABEANS. now while there are lots and lots of kdrama and kpop sites out there, there are two that are sorta personal faves to me, and DRAMABEANS is one of them. (the other is SEOULBEATS, incidentally.)

and then i read another piece shared on Hancinema HERE.

okie, those reviews sure made the Queen of Reversals drama sound that bit more hopeful. so hee, i started watching abit… phew, it wasn’t as bad/draggy/housewifey as i was half-afraid it would be! i’m only at the initial few epis where PSH simply didn’t show up enough. but there’s enough of him to tease and entice me abit. oh boy, i can’t wait to get over the divorce and let the courtship come on full steam!

(haha, one of the reviews did say this drama will make you incredibly familiar with your Fast/Forward button! most seem to watch for PSH and would F/F to the meaty parts where he appeared, or from midway onwards. someone did say the extended part was the juiciest, whee!)

i love love love actors who can handle kissing scenes.

i hate those plastered-on-her-lips-immobile kissing scenes. i love those that are slightly open-mouthed, wakakaka! i ain’t the only one who noticed his errr… forte(?) and his kiss in The Princess’ Man was even included in the Top 10 Kisses in Kdrama for that year!

and… you probably don’t wanna miss reading THIS POST ABOUT PSH, THE KISSER.

one of his fans also noticed his tears in what she’d called THE PERFECT KISSING SCENE.

there was one interview where PSH was asked what he thought about his kissing scene.

his reply? hee, he’d said, ‘I’m quite good.‘ ooooh…! let me be the judge of that, please pretty please with a cherry on TOP?

anyway, this is just a rambling post on a lazy (and very very very hot!) day.

me just wanna share that i’ve only been convinced i should give Queen of Reversals a chance. let’s see if i can get past the PSH-less parts and get to epi 31. yes, you’re looking at someone who has a habit of abandoning kdramas midway… yes, this is the one who didn’t finish My Princess, Boys Over Flowers, Greatest Love, etc etc etc…

and in case i could go all the way with PSH in Queen of Reversals, i just wanna post THIS LINK TO QoR NGs for later, keke!

meanwhile, leaving you with some interesting tidbits and pics. click HERE to read about the hardship PSH went through when he was a struggling actor.

yes, that’s his kitten! yes, he has a kitten!!

a very very cute one too! i thought it looks like a gremblin, keke! click HERE to see of PSH with his kitten!

now if you haven’t yet watched PSH in anything, please go watch, go watch! especially if you like YJ, i’ve a very very very strong feeling you’ll probably dig PSH too!

Woohoo! PSH would look fab as a vampire, don't you think?!

i ain’t a Goo Hye Sun fan.

never liked her protrayal of Jandi in BOF, or maybe i just never did like that character. and she had made that character a wee bit too rough for my liking *shrugs*

她就是整个演得太外现了，不是我喜欢或欣赏的那型… 戏里的角色也都太吵了，受不了。

and still don’t like her in the taiwanese idol drama about the robot boyfriend. seems to me there’s very little difference in the way she’d interpreted the two roles. maybe that’s just me, since i do know there are peeps who love her in these dramas. (but oh boy, she has great skin!!)

but but but… that said, from what i’ve read about her, she does seem to be one talented lady outside of these un-real dramas. when she’s not acting and when she’s not in school, she seems to spend a fair bit of time writing screenplay, directing and even sketching (or izzit painting?) anyway, she appears to be quite multi-faceted.

hehe, she’s a YG artist!! (for the uninitiated, that’s the agency Big Bang is under, keke!)

anyway, came across this article about her tonight and thought there really is something deeper than the simpleton Jandi in her. thank goodness for that… hee!

reposted from SOOMPI NEWS 2012.05.09

Goo Hye Sun Receives Warm Reception for Taking the Subway

it’s really about perspective and what goes on in our heads, ya?

she’s spot on, you know…? that actually she hasn’t changed and logically, if her home and her destination are still the same as before she got famous, then why can’t she take the subway now? just because people recognize her? or more because famous people ain’t ‘supposed’ to be taking the subway? who makes these rules anyway? and should she be changing the way she travels just because of these strange pre-conceived celeb notions?

if she can internalize the fact that nothing much has changed and the subway is just a convenient and practical form of transport for her, then she CAN take the subway… provided she can manage the stares and autograph requests.

now if only we all can rid the notion that we have to play by other people’s rules and that we have to cower to other people’s expectations (of us!), then we all can be liberated.

but really, if you think about it… it’s all in our own heads. more often than not, we ourselves are the ones telling ourselves we can’t. but why the hell not? it’s OK to be different, it’s generally OK to break the rules so long as breaking them doesn’t kill or hurt you (or anyone else, for that matter)

take age.

one of the things i hear so often from people around me is, ‘i’m too old for this…‘

really? says who?

says you yourself, right? and if you were to defy convention and just do it anyway, who’s gonna stop you? is anyone really gonna come up to your face and tell you that you’re too old for something? most likely not, right?

so there, we live in our own imagined fear that other people will talk about us, will mock us. really? and so what even if they do? is it worth giving up something you really wanna do? if you think so, then perhaps you just don’t wanna do that something badly enough.

hey, life is short, play harder.

if you would free your mind, this is what you will get:

for the past few years, singapore has become sort of a magnet for kpop and kdrama stars.

i can’t even recall when hallyu (read: korean wave) has become mainstream. yup, it’s no longer just a small group of fanatics and maniacs liking all things korean, now the korean influence is evident in almost all aspects of our lifestyle.

i’ve lost count of the korean stars gracing our shores. since quite a few years ago, organizers too have started jumping onto the bandwagon to bring korean artists here for fan events. in fact for the past couple of years, hardly a month went by that we did not see a korean artist in town. some months, we even saw not just one, but a handful!

even the recent MEN’s FASHION WEEK 2012 saw korean stars like SE7EN and daniel henney headlining the events.

MFW

that said, not many kpop artists are able to sell out big-scale concerts here, unless they’re mega stars. i think so far, we’ve seen super junior and girls’ generation hold successful concerts that sold out. the rest, they mostly take the safer route of organizing showcases.

the difference between concert and showcase?

well, it’s mainly about the scale. concerts are usually held at singapore indoor stadium or sometimes at the max pavilion (where capacity is smaller and venue rental is cheaper. but hor, the cheaper rental also means poorer sound quality… sighs…)

showcases are typically held at smaller venues; we’re talking about capacity of usually between 800-1,200 fans for showcases. showcases usually feature some 6-8 songs or sometimes 10 if the artists or agencies are feeling generous, keke! showcases would usually include a Q&A segment and sometimes, they even throw in some games or interactive activities with lucky fans.

and… sometimes, in order to generate more money, the organizers may also sell ‘add-on items’, like pay an additional amount on top of the ticket price for an autograph, a handshake, and sometimes, even photo opportunities. recently, there’s also a new trend of selling passes to attend the press conference.

yea, these days, everything’s getting so ‘modular’, tsk tsk…

what about kdrama stars, you wonder…

since they can’t exactly sing a handful of songs, they usually have what we call fan meetings. these usually last an hour or an hour and a half. the korean artist would usually show up and have Q&A session and then play some games with the fans. there may be a song or two, but usually no song since actors and actresses can’t necessarily sing.

and oh, yea, the organizers sometimes also sell autograph passes, photograph passes or press conference passes… as for scale, fan meetings are usually about the same as showcases, yup, about 1000 heads or thereabouts.

now as you all know, KIM HYUN JOONG was recently in town.

the fan event was sold as a fan meeting. and it actually happened last friday evening at the concert-worthy singapore indoor stadium.

RunningIntoTheSun

fan or not, if i were to speak objectively, that was a very very very sincere showing.

here, check out the setlist:

1. Intro: Let Me Go
2. Break Down
3. Please
4. Thank You
5. Happiness Is
6. Kiss Kiss
7. I’m Your Man
8. Smile
9. Because I’m Stupid
=== Stage Activities ===
10. Marry You
11. Do You Like That
12. Lucky Guy (remix)
13. If You Are Like Me
=== Encore ===
14. One More Time
15. Lucky Guy

yup, practically 15 songs!

he called that a fan meeting?! that’s like a concert already!

yea, there were stage effects, dancers, specially prepared clips, etc etc etc. oh, he even let ‘money’ drop from the sky for us, keke! u:zoosin dollar notes!

RunningIntoTheSun

and yup, there were stage activities too where he played games with fans and stuff.

seriously, he needn’t have.

he could have made the same amount of money with a lot less effort, honestly.

i mean he could have easily sold out a fan meeting of, say, 1,200-1,500 capacity and during the event, just stroll in, smile, answer some questions, smile, play games, smile, take some pics or shake some hands, smile.

no need for even change of outfits, or dancers, or stage effects… and yup, that also means no need for endless hours of concert planning, choreography, dance practices and even training up his stamina for the concert.

to be honest, it ain’t even his style to do fan-friendly stuff like those that he did onstage last friday night. yea, i know lots of fans liked that, but i’d more than cringed at the things they were trying during the stage activities. kindda cheesy and contrived, if you ask me. and oh, don’t get me started on how awkward the language barrier was…

but sure, i can totally see his effort and his earnest wish to want to up the fan service.

lotsa heart there, HJ.

RunningIntoTheSun

on top of all that, it’s like he knows what fans want and he even threw in the high-five session.

it’s always difficult (especially for overseas) fans to get a chance to go up-close and personal with their fave korean stars, let alone having abit of skinship, keke! seems like he totally understands the heart of a fan! *squeals*

and we’re talking about high-fiving every single fan in the audience. the fan meet started slightly after 8pm and ended at almost 11pm. and i know that he was still onstage high-fiving and shaking fans’ hands after midnight. (hee, as expected, the high five session kindda turned into a handshaking session!)

there were some male fans whose turns were towards the end and they shared that his hand was already rather weak and near trembling by then. yea, i guess it was hard work. after the performance, he had to stand somemore and shake everyone’s hand and all the while, standing straight and smiling and saying ‘Thank You‘ to everyone.

RunningIntoTheSun

HJ arh, why did you choose to do it this way?

this is indeed the path less traveled.

most korean artists would have taken the more comfortable way out and just do a fan meeting. and i mean a ‘normal’ fan meeting where he doesn’t need to sing and dance and sweat it out. quite easily done in under two hours, no sweat.

but what did he give us last friday night?

this man gave us the most sincere of sincere fan meetings.

the heart was pure, and i saw the pure wanting to give his fans something spectacular. he’d chosen not to take the easy way out and had chosen to sweat it out instead of just smile it out.

RunningIntoTheSun

上个星期五晚上
我看到的是满满的诚意
我看到的是贤重的心意
那一夜 星光非常灿烂

and… some of you may know that i love love love MURDERERQ’s pics and fancams of HJ. seems like she was here too! check out her photos from last friday HERE!

and here’s a sampling from last friday night, courtesy of THEMURDERERQ’s YOUTUBE CHANNEL.

if you’re a fan and you didn’t catch his performance, i think it’s a real pity. especially if you haven’t yet had a chance to see him perform live. lotsa fans would vouch that HJ is a lovely to look at on posters and stuff, but he’s even lovelier when in motion! (and hey, he even gave us the long-missed jjitjoong! how could you have missed that one, ya?)

so now, if you can afford the time and money, do go support him in hong kong and taiwan, or even china mainland. yes, tickets are still available, so go go go.

if you’re a fan, yes, i’d go so far as to say you’re letting him down if you don’t go see him. if you don’t go show support for all that he’s done for you. this is the guy who had given you free showcases in seoul, and this is the guy who had given you a concert-worth of fan meeting when he could have just sat there and breezed through it with no sweat.

and now, i leave the media pictures from RUNNING INTO THE SUN (RITS), the organizer for HJ’s fan meeting in singapore. this is a slide show, so just sit back and wait for the pics to flow~

do note to credit RITS if you use or repost their pics. no watermark doesn’t mean you can steal pics, k? it’s shameful how picture stealing has been happening in the fandom.

yes! kim hyun joong has arrived in singapore yesterday (2nd may, wed)!

here’s a fantabulous picture of him at incheon airport yesterday morning.

to be honest, i was a little worried about airport reception coz he’s arriving on a weekday afternoon. people have to work or study, you know… but but but, surprise surprise, the crowd was actually more than decent.

and the press conference was also held yesterday. it was at the fairmont at 5pm. yup, i was there (thanks, tiff!) tiff of SEOUL RHYTHMS shared a sneak pic yesterday. lovely one, and i just gotta repost it. yes, she’s right, this was also part of what attracted me to him in that beginning.

that bashful smile!!

bb ♥ Seoul Rhythms

and… here’s another not-so-bashful but still wonderful photo of him from the press conference.

bb ♥ Seoul Rhythms

do check out SEOUL RHYTHMS for photos, clips and also newsy bits on HJ‘s fan meeting activities here, ya?

and now, back to the press conference yesterday… it was actually a rather short one. and oh, the media turnout was good. the room’s packed; in fact it was so packed i felt really really really hot!

gotta ‘fess up that the press conference definitely wasn’t the most interesting, but it was quite an improvement from the previous TFS ones. those were really boring as the questions bordered on ‘too safe’. this time around, he seemed more relaxed and more open to sharing too. a pity not enough good or interesting questions came up for him to show off his 4D skills.

the main takeaway, i feel, was how much he’s prepared for his first asia fan meeting. he kept emphasizing on how he wanted to share the other sides of him, the lesser-known sides of him. he promised an upgraded performance and he also shared that he would be performing songs that he’d never done before. and oh, there’s even gonna be a clip that would show the different sides of HJ.

the translator’s the same one who had translated for him during his past two TFS outings here. and in my mind, she’s quite possibly one of the best, and she did really well for his past two TFS events. unfortunately, she seemed a little out of sorts during the press conference yesterday. i thought she wasn’t as steady, accurate and thorough in her translation.

me wonders if that first question had thrown her off. he rattled off a looooooong answer to that first question! it was so loooooong that i was worried for the translator! i mean, how on earth is someone supposed to remember all of what he’d said and translate as closely as possible?? i kept hoping he would stop midway for her to translate before moving on to the next part of his answer.

anyway, shan’t dwell long on that since there’re already quite many articles out from the press conference. instead, i’m gonna be posting the links to the clips that OKPOP from razor TV has uploaded.

OKPOP by RAZOR TV | PART 1
OKPOP by RAZOR TV | PART 2
OKPOP by RAZOR TV | PART 3

tomorrow is D-DAY!!!

singapore is the first stop of his first ever asia fan meeting and i think it’s an important leg.

seems like ticket sales are a little lacklustre over in hong kong and taiwan… so i’m thinking if he can put up a good show and if there’s enough hype and awareness about how fabulous a show he’s put up, then there’s a good chance that ticket sales would pick up after tomorrow. after all, there’s still time since hong kong fan meeting is happening on the 12th and taiwan has two shows scheduled on 18th and 19th.

and oh! to celebrate and also to show support for his first ever asia fan meeting, seven of his fanclubs from different countries have come together to launch a fan support project! woohoo!

led and mainly coordinated by his longest-standing fanclub in korea KIMHYUNJOONG PERFECT, this coalition has pooled together to produce surprise giveaways for fans attending his fan meetings! (omigod, PERFECT has been around since 2004.01.29! *gasp*)

yup, yup, not just in singapore… there will also be surprise giveaways at the other fan meetings!

but but but… since singapore is the first stop and it’s happening tomorrow, the korean fans from PERFECT brought over these surprise giveaways and we spent some time tonight to pack these. for singapore, the participating fanclub is LOVEKIMHYUNJOONG.com! yea, that’s the one i’d helped start, woohoo!

here, the loose items that we were packing into little plastic bags earlier tonight…

bb ♥ | happiebb.com/blog

we’re giving away postcards and also mobile phone cleaners!

bb ♥ | happiebb.com/blog

keke, photo taken while work was in progress! these were the ‘done’ (read: packed) ones.

bb ♥ | happiebb.com/blog

wondering which seven fanclubs are involved in this fan support project? check ‘em out here…

bb ♥ | happiebb.com/blog

helpers and volunteers from the LoveKimHyunJoong fanclub will be at the singapore indoor stadium tomorrow to distribute these surprise giveaways to fans. do follow the LOVEKIMHYUNJOONG TWITTER ACCOUNT to find out where to lay your hands on one of these surprise giveaways, ya?

meanwhile, let me go to a corner and sulk a little bit… i learnt that tomorrow’s fan meeting host is gonna be DJ ken from radio station 100.3.

(incidentally, what’s with that shirt HJ was wearing?? i thought it’s awful… if it’s miss hong, i really think both YJ and HJ could use a change…)

i’d blogged about GD&TOP’s COLLABORATION WITH PIXIE LOTTE, DANCING ON MY OWN about a month ago, ya?

i’d said then i love that song. and let me say now i still love that song. great track, really! it’s one of those that i can literally put on replay mode all day, everyday! jinjja!!

i’d read that pixie lott‘s is gonna be in town (yea, i mean singapore, of course! did you really think i were korean?! hee!) she’s here for some private event, but would be signing autographs at bugis or something. believe she’s coming sometime mid or in the second half of the may month.

what’s my point since i don’t seem to have all my facts? my point is… she’ll be heading over to korea after singapore! it’ll be her first trip and yea, she’ll be meeting GD&TOP in seoul!

actually although she’s never been to korea, she has already met the boys in japan a couple in japan last month (whoa, it’s may already!) she even tweeted her picture with them; here…

i hope they release an official MV or something! this track was just released in korean on 30th april and it’s already creeping up every chart out there!

told you it’s a great track, didn’t i?

anyway, wanna repost this fanvid featuring all three of them and quite possibly at their most attractive too! gotta say this fan (GD fan?) did a fabulous job and she even took care to try and ‘lip sync’ them!!

seems like pixie lott too saw this MV? not sure, but the fan was thanking her for sharing her MV!! that’s like a huge huge honor, don’t you think? i mean, lots of artists and agencies would probably wanna sue you for infringing on their intellectual property or portrait rights or something…

but then again, this fanvid was made so beautifully and obviously with much love, so… hmmm…

please please please watch this! it’ll take just less than five minutes of your time! and hey, this is the third time i’m saying it already, it’s a great track!

talking about dancing on my own…. i thought i was dancing on my own here on my blog, you know?

okie, okie, i know i do clock some hundreds of readers everyday, but presumably there are only three kinds of readers here. one, you’re my friend and you love me dearly, so much so that you would read whatever rubbish i ‘publish‘. two, you’re a BYJ/KHJ fan and used to follow my on my old blog and you haven’t yet kicked the habit of checking me out… even though you know i’m VIP now. and three, you’re a kpop fan and somehow your google searches led you here. it’s all an accident that you’re still reading now, yup, i know, i know…

there you have it, i’ve always thought that no one in pursuit of any serious or intellectual discussion would even pass by this place. so yea, in that sense, i thought i was dancing on my own!

so… can you imagine my big fat surprise when i realised someone had reposted my LIVING WITHIN YOUR MEANS post on that SINGAPOREANSSAY.WORDPRESS BLOG!

and aigoo, i’m the sort who doesn’t check or vet my own writing before i hit ‘publish‘. as i was re-reading my own blog post over there, i wanted to dig a hole and bury my head inside. the grammatical and typo errors… *shudders*

but i’d imagine my big fat surprise probably can’t rival that of those readers who got curious and clicked to visit my blog here. hahahahahaha, surely they would have thought they’d clicked on the wrong link and somehow ended up on some kpop fangirl’s blog??? wakakakakakaka! the very thought of this amuses me to no end!!

and oh, there’re quite many FB likes for my post (thanks, thanks!), but only one comment. it came from A SINGAPOREAN WHO’s NOW LIVING IN PERTH, and he’d said,

i like the idea of living within means. it is the only way to live. any other way means one is in debt. in some cases, we do not have a choice but to go into debt for example, housing.

having said that, i don’t feel gender equality is necessary a good thing for singapore. in fact, i think it is one of the key reasons because our low marriage and birth rate. but that’s another discussion, another day.

interesting! that bit about how he feels gender equality is not necessarily a good thing for singapore.

hmmmm…. i’d never thought about it in any other way other than to be immensely grateful and even occasionally proud of this fact! me wanna go tinker about that comment for abit and come back and share my views. but yea, another day.

for now, i wanna go dancing on my own!

and hey, if you belong to the first group of readers, then go click on ‘play‘ now. yes, i mean

NOW.

i’d blogged about LeeSsang HERE and HERE.

yup, i like ‘em!

actually the duo has been around for years but they saw real commercial success from their seventh album Asura Balbalta released last august.

that album really stormed and took over the Kpop charts! in fact, they were surprised themselves and thought someone had pranked them by photoshopping the charts, keke! read more HERE.

2011 was a good year for them, what with the wild success of the album and also, the public was warming up to their faces too since the pair was active in variety shows. Gil was on Come To Play and also Infinity Challenge, whilst Gary‘s on Running Man! yea, monday couple, keke!

heard that the duo’s working on a new album… and in order to prepare well for that, Gil has actually stepped down from Come To Play. read that his last filming was actually on 20th april!

but me happy to hear that they’re hoping to RELEASE A NEW ALBUM THIS SUMMER!

after my seoul trip… or rather, more specifically, after watching two Big Shows in seoul in early march, i came back to singapore suffering from withdrawal symptoms! jinjja! for the first time ever, i was actually missing some celebs who don’t even know i exist on the surface of this earth!!

so… i’d actually created a playlist of the setlist from Big Show 2012. i was playing that most of the time, alternating only with my other Big Bang or GD&TOP playlists.

yea, i was getting quite ridiculously addicted to Big Bang that even I got scared, haha! so i started to ‘adjust’ myself last week and resumed listening to other songs. and… keke, i was reminded again of how i’d enjoyed LeeSsang‘s music!

other than the tracks on their last album, i also love love love one other track, The Girl Who Can’t Say Goodbye, the Boy Who Can’t Leave. that’s actually from their sixth album, Hexagonal. i think that’s released way back in 2009.

the MV featured Lee Hyori and Ryu Seung Bum.

and… here’s another version of the translation for the lyrics. yup, yup, different version from the one that’s embedded in the MV above. i kindda prefer this latter one; what about you?

reposted from EKLYRICOS.BLOGSPOT
credit: YEEUN2GRACE.com

Leessang ft Jung In |
The Girl Who Can’t Say Goodbye, the Boy Who Can’t Leave

Are men caught in love done so because of weakness?
Are men starved of love not worthy of it?
Are men that keep secrets bad men?
Why is it that love changes?

seemingly simple lyrics, but it’s such a realistic reflection of what happens in lots of relationship today, no?

and… here’s another clip of LeeSsang when they guested on KBS’ Sketchbook in 2009 as part of their album promo activities.

the clip’s got them singing three songs and yea, it’s got chinese subs… nice too!

1st song = The Girl who can’t Break up, the Boy who can’t leave
2nd song = I am not laughing
3nd song = Our Meeting (Uri Jigeumanna)

and i’m gonna leave you with something abit more recent from their Asura Balbalta album. this track’s called Remembrance.

yea, i’d posted it before. i really do like it lots keke! anyway, am just sharing this again coz i’ve just found a version with both english and chinese trans.

me thinks the lyrics are fab and Baek Ji Young‘s voice is just so beautiful!

ohhhh..! one more thing!

i was googling for LeeSsang‘s pictures and came across one of Gary dressed up like Waldo! and of course, that reminded me of how TOP too dressed like that not so long ago, keke!

and… hee, more TOP TOP TOP!

guess it’s no secret how much i adore Big Bang.

some people are surprised actually since on the outside, i hardly look like i’m the sort who enjoys this sort of music. but i do, i do, i do!

i can’t remember exactly when i started liking Big Bang… maybe it’s been a year and a half or so…? yea, not too long ago. but that’s mainly because i never really paid much attention to kpop at all since i’d always negated it to those forgettable sugary-pop songs that ain’t really my cuppa.

until i discovered GD&TOP.

i was already listening to abit of Big Bang back in the second half of 2010… yea, i was familiar with the hits Lies, Haru Haru, Number 1…

but it was the GD&TOP subunit’s album release that caught my attention, really. i love love love every track on that mini album. and i love love love that the look that the duo was sporting. the loud fashion, the loud music, the loud everything. it was love at first sight, it was love at the first ‘listen’ and it’s even sustainable love.

from then, i sorta moved on to Big Bang; it helped that they released their 4th mini album Tonight not too long after the GD&TOP collaboration. then i started watching their variety clips and stuff and reading up abit of how Big Bang came to be.

it was a road of no return. the more i read, the more i watch and the more i listen, the more i love love love them!

and… an idea that had come to me during those bae-fangirly days came back to me.

i used to entertain the idea of ‘to know him is to love him‘ and i’d always thought fleetingly that this applied to most idols, if not all.

i mean, if we were to spend time to try and learn lots of things about an idol, surely we would become somewhat emotionally attached and we would see lots of good things about that idol. and it’s easy to fall for that idol when you’ve spent time to ‘get to know him’. of course, it’s all relative… as fans, we would ever sit down and sip tea and talk about his take on life… so the ‘get to know him’ part refers to whatever we have access to, like news articles, idol’s docu-films, their outings on variety shows, fan accounts, etc.

i remember i used to wonder if i would just randomly pick any celebrity and start ‘researching’ and reading up everything i could find on him… would i have that ‘to know him is to love him’ syndrome?

anyway, i don’t exactly have a point, haha! i’m just sharing my very random and not-at-all-structured-nor-meaningful thoughts…

back to Big Bang… they’ve already wrapped up their ALIVE promo activities in korea and their Goodbye Stage was on Inkigayo yesterday.



they’d changed the choreography a little for the Fantastic Baby stage. love it!

and yea, the boys seemed to be getting new (and fabulously beautiful!) outfits all the time! i like this round and hahaha, Taeyang‘s all covered up for a change.

the starting where GD was strutting his stuff in that fierce jacket and ‘walking stick’ thingy… and that silvery white ponytail! he rocked the stage alright…

and they looked so happy when they were all lined up to do the conga thingy!

and here’s Bad Boy!

did you see how smoking hot the boys were in red??

haha, GD looked absolutely adorable with that headscarf thingy going on! the way he was smiling and tugging at the ‘bow’… omigod, can any boy get more adorable than this??

oh oh, if you would check out the amount of skin exposure on the boys in this one! Daesung‘s sorta made a breakthrough this time, wearing a tank top that’s more commonly seen on Taeyang! yea, the sides were cut so low we could see his chest every time he moved!! hee, talk about tantalizing!

and hee, if you would compare Dae‘s out vis-a-vis TOP‘s… summer’s definitely arrived for Dae (and yea, Taeyang too!), but TOP seemed to be trapped in some cold climate still! he’s wearing a thickish-looking hoodie underneath that red zip-up, keke!

but me loves TOP’s tousled hair here! *squeals*

they didn’t win, Sistar did… but the boys wee soooooo…. deliriously happy at the end! the boys were clowning and running around and aigoo, Taeyang arh! check out the clip HERE.

know what?

i do like Big Bang as a group, but TOP‘s been my fave and GD my second fave for the longest time. but these days, i’ve gotta admit that GD’s really crept into my insides!

in my mind, he’s talent + fashion + attitude + personality + leadership all rolled into one!

i’m amazed at how chameleon-like this young man is. one minute, he’s just a skinny young boy, the next he’s some adorable cute boy, and then he’s the flower boy… and yea, the list goes on!

me especially loves how he bites his lower lip when he’s feeling shy, sooooo… cute can!!

and he’s so talented musically, ah!

hee, like i was telling the dongsaengs last night, TOP is still #1, but GD’s no longer at #2…! GD is now #1.25, wakakaka!

will leave you with THE LINK showing what the boys had prepared for the VIPs who attended the pre-recording for Bad Boy yesterday.

and oh, if you read chinese, click HERE for the fan account from the FB pre-recording. yet another great fan account from 闵公子的草莓猫 (Master Min’s Strawberry Cat.

ZZANG…!! here’s the official poster for Kim Hyun Joong’s Fan Meeting Tour 2012!

thanks for the heads’ up, VIOLET!

keyeast.co.kr

soooo… happy that he’s gone for this look!

yea, i really really very much prefer his Break Down look than the Lucky Guy look. in fact, to be totally honest, i really really really dislike the Lucky Guy image, so am sooooo… happy that he’s ditched that one for this cooler, manlier image for the official poster.

(on the side, ain’t it amazing that the left and right of his side profile can look so different?! i’ve always read and heard about how our left and right sides of the face can look different, but i’d kindda thought HJ‘s face seemed rather ‘symmetrical’… guess not, huh? hee!

check out how different the eyes, the nose and even the jawline look! interesting!)

you know, many fans are doing all sorts of things to show support.

some are JETTING OFF HERE, THERE, EVERYWHERE TO SEE HIM AT HIS VARIOUS FAN MEETINGS, and some are being mighty generous to CONTRIBUTE MONEY TO SPONSOR OTHER FANS TO ATTEND THE FM, some are cooking up ideas like folding paper cranes and for each fan to pass him one paper crane during the high five session, and yet some others are trying to see if they can concoct some lightstick event during the fan meeting.

and… at the fanclub level, some are coming together to work out some simple fan gifts and there’s also some food and drinks support going on. will share more about these in due course, hehe!

it’s really heartwarming and touching to see how fans are doing whatever they can to let their idol know how much they love and support him.

what about you? what are YOU doing to show support?

if you wanna support Kim Hyun Joong, be sure to go grab your ticket to see him at the fan meeting! if you’ve watched the PROMO CLIP released yesterday, you would know that he’s promising us one great show!

yea, even if you don’t do anything else to show support, at least buy a ticket and be there to see him. this is his first stop and it’s important to both him and the fans that he show the public he has tremendous fan support and that he can put up something amazing.

and now… just six more sleeps!!

it’s just another seven sleeps before 4th may, friday!

what’s happening on 4th may? that’s THE FIRST STOP OF KIM HYUN JOONG’s ASIA FAN MEETING! yup, yup, it’s gonna be singapore first, woohoo!!

still haven’t gotten your tickets?! did you not hear about RITS’ SPECIAL LABOUR DAY OFFER? go grab those tickets at a whopping 35% off!

and… the 4D U:ZOOSIN has got a video message for all of his fans in singapore! am reposting this from RUNNING INTO THE SUN’s FACEBOOK!

and oh, RITS also had a little message to share with all of you who have already bought tickets. here goes:

RITS: A lil message from Kim Hyun Joong specially for Singapore! Will u be there on 4 May to high-five him personally?

Everyone at the Singapore concert will also get a U:ZOOSIN T-shirt & Brooch! Present your ticket at the redemption booth (Singapore Indoor Stadium, outside Sistic box office) to redeem, 4 May 2012 from 5pm-8pm.

one more thing!

mianeyo! i only just realised today that i never did get around to uploading and sharing those photos that i’d taken during HJ‘s second visit to singapore. that was back in aug 2011 when he was here for TFS the second time around. these photos were from the press conference that took place on 19th aug 2011.

i’d already shared them on LOVEKIMHYUNJOONG’s FACEBOOK PAGE, but since i’m already blogging about HJ tonight, will also repost the pics here.

anyway, enjoy!

(sorry arh, photo quality so-so niah-niah… i borrowed yen‘s camera and that was my first time handling a DSLR. haha, i remember how hilarious it was since i didn’t (and still don’t!) know what buttons are for what functions… i even had to call her at the last minute to ask about stuff, wakakaka! and… i’m a terrible photographer to begin with, oopsies!)

believe me, SHINHWA is really really really quite the ultimate dorks and they’re sooooo… adorable, sooooo… adorable!!

and, they’re cutest and funniest when the six of them are together. can’t say i’m a fan, i’m not familiar with their music but i love watching them on variety shows. they really are as hilarious as hilarious comes.

and of course, other than loving to watch their funnies, the most admirable thing about this longest-standing kpop idol group is their tenacity to want to stay together, their bond and their friendship.

i dare say never before had kpop seen anything like this, and i also dare say it will be difficult to find another group like them.

eric said something in the SECOND PART OF WIN WIN that touched me much.

he said for the past four years, the six of them had not been doing activities together, but each of them did have their own solo activities and each of them still ‘branded’ themselves as xxx from Shinhwa. he feels that fans support all of them coz they’re shinhwa changjo (shinhwa fans), and this unconditional and unwavering support is for the shinhwa group.

and he feels it’s shameful if they continued to enjoy and profit from the fans’ support of their solo activities when they’re still marketing themselves as shinhwa. if they had no intention of getting back together as a group, then he opined that they should stop saying they’re shinhwa.

so honorable, right?!!

i love eric so much when i heard him say that!! yes, that’s really ‘man’!

anyway, me putting up this post tonight just to share some of these guys’ 4D stories.

just in case you don’t know who’s who… here are their nicknames!

Eric (晸赫/Mun Junghyuk) 16 Feb 1979
aka 大大, 文兔子， ET, 文银行

Lee Min-woo (玟雨/Lee Minwoo) 28 Jul 1979
aka M, 猫猫, 狼猫

Kim Dong-wan (烔完/Kim Dongwan) 21 Nov 1979
aka 东万, 万万, 万哥

Shin Hye-sung (彗星/Jung Pilgyo) 27 Nov 1979
aka 郑弼教, 狐狸, 王子

Jun Jin (前進/Park Choong Jae) 19 Aug 1980
aka 朴忠载 小jin, 小白, 菜菜, 鸟宝宝

Andy (先鎬/Lee Sunho) 21 Jan 1981
aka dd, 樱桃

source: 小鱼儿的博客
reposted from BAIDU SHINHWA BAR

1、大大的仇恨

大大：东万！我恨你们几个！
万万：为什么呀？？
大大：你们都不疼我，我生病的时候也不关心我！
万万：我们都很爱你呀，上次你发烧的时候，我们不是都围着你吗？
大大：哼！！当我不知道吗？那天暖炉坏了，你们是过来取暖的！！

2、小jin口渴记

小jin：哥，我口渴，给我拿杯水。
大大：自己倒，睡觉呢！
小jin：哎呀，人家口渴嘛，给我拿杯水。
大大：你再喊，我就过去揍你！
小jin：哥，来揍我的时候顺便给我拿杯水。

3、汽油涨价了

万万：听说最近汽油涨价了呀，我真是没想到！
猫猫：你买汽车了？
万万：没有。
猫猫：那你怕什么？
万万：我昨天刚买了一个打火机。

4、唠叨的万万

猫猫：我快崩溃了！！
狐狸：怎么了？
猫猫：东万实在是太唠叨了！
狐狸：这么难忍受？他究竟有多唠叨啊？
猫猫：他唠叨的以至于我和他去海滩度假回来，他的牙齿都晒黑了！

5、抽象派

大大：junjin呐，这两天我们不在家你和andy过的怎么样啊？
小jin：不错啊，挺有趣的。andy这几天在家学画抽象画，每天他画画，我做饭，吃好饭我们就坐下来猜谜。
大大：？？
小jin：我猜他画的是什么，他猜我做的是什么。

6、闹钟

万万：junjin啊，今天怎么起的这么早啊？
小jin：我定了闹钟
万万：你每天不是把闹钟拍了继续睡吗？
小jin：今天不知谁在我的闹钟旁边放了一圈老鼠夹

7、好漂亮的鲜花

dd：哇，好漂亮的花，谁送的？
万万：是你哥我啊。
dd：谢谢哥，好漂亮，我喜欢。
万万（想）：我就知道他一定无法抗拒鲜花。嘿嘿！
dd（打电话）：港口花店吗？我想五折转售一束鲜花。

8、包子脸变迁

狐狸（照镜子）：我发现我变瘦了耶~~~哇，连下巴都变尖了！andy，你看我是不是连下巴都尖了？
樱桃：真的耶，两个下巴都变尖了耶！

9、随身携带的秘密

小jin：听说你随身携带我的照片？
樱桃：是滴。
小jin：听说你每次遇到难题，只要看看我的照片就会充满勇气。
樱桃：你都知道啦。
小jin：莫非~~你暗恋我？？？
樱桃：才不是呢，其实是~~每当遇到难题时，我都会拿出你的照片看，然后对自己说，世界上还会有什么事比这个人难对付吗？？

10 Andy 占上风

有一天狐狸急匆匆的找到ｊｕｎｊｉｎ，
着急地说：不好了不好了，大大和ａｎｄｙ打起来了！快去吧！要不会出人命的！
ｊｕｎｊｉｎ问：什么时间开始的？
狐狸：“都快半小时了”。
ｊｕｎｊｉｎ着急：“那你怎么早不说？”
狐狸：“刚才一直是ａｎｄｙ占上风的，可现在我看他要吃亏！”

11.水蜜桃

有一天，andy望着狐狸的脸说：哥，你的脸好象水蜜桃哟！
狐狸高兴地问：是怎么象的？
大大插嘴：上面都有细细的毛哟！
狐狸、andy：……

12， 遇到外国人

在路上遇到两个外国人问路，jin问：「Can you speak korean？」
两个外国人用韩语回答：「如果你讲慢一点的话，我们可以听的懂！」
jin说：「Can…you…speak…korean？」

13.傻孩子

有一天dd问万万：“哥，我是不是傻孩子啊？”
万万说：“傻孩子，你怎么会是傻孩子呢？”

and i strong recommend that you all watch Shinhwa Broadcast!

they’ve already aired six episodes by now, and the next one E07 is gonna be showing these six big boys with kids! can’t wait!!

here, the links to watch Shinhwa Broadcast with chinese subs!

SHINHWA BROADCAST E01
SHINHWA BROADCAST E02
SHINHWA BROADCAST E03
SHINHWA BROADCAST E04
SHINHWA BROADCAST E05
SHINHWA BROADCAST E06
SHINHWA BROADCAST E07
SHINHWA BROADCAST E08